Lamp having integral voltage controller

ABSTRACT

A lamp includes a voltage conversion circuit that converts a line voltage to a desired RMS load voltage. The voltage conversion circuit is entirely within a lamp base and uses pulse width modulation to define the RMS load voltage. The voltage conversion circuit includes a bridge that supplies the RMS load voltage to a light emitting element, a switching transistor that pulse width modulates a current supplied to the bridge, a timer connected to a gate of the switching transistor to turn the switching transistor on and off at a rate that defines the RMS load voltage, an analog-to-digital converter that converts the RMS load voltage to a digital signal, a comparator that compares an output from the converter to a preset reference value, and a circuit that adjusts the timer in response to an output from the comparator.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a power controller that supplies aspecified power to a load, and more particularly to a lamp with avoltage converter that converts line voltage to a voltage suitable forlamp operation.

Some lamps operate at a voltage lower than a line (or mains) voltage of,for example, 120 V or 220 V, and for such lamps a voltage converter thatconverts line voltage to a lower operating voltage must be provided. Alower lamp operating voltage provides benefits, including the ability touse a filament wire with a larger cross section and shorter length,thereby increasing lamp efficiency, color temperature and filamentefficacy, and improving sag resistance, hot shock resistance andvibration induced flickering.

Power supplied to a lamp may be controlled with a phase-control clippingcircuit that typically includes an RC circuit and uses phase-controlclipping to reduce the line voltage to an RMS load voltage suitable foroperation of the light emitting element of the lamp.

A simple four-component RC phase-control clipping circuit is shown inFIG. 1 and includes a capacitor 22, a diac 24, a triac 26 that istriggered by the diac 24, and resistor 28. The resistor 28 may be apotentiometer that sets a resistance in the circuit to control a phaseat which the triac 26 fires. The RMS load voltage and current aredetermined by the resistance and capacitance values in the clippingcircuit since the phase at which the clipping occurs is determined bythe RC series network and since the RMS voltage and current depend onhow much energy is removed by the clipping. FIG. 2 illustrates a clippedwaveform formed by a phase-control clipping circuit such as illustratedin FIG. 1.

The phase-control clipping circuit has drawbacks. As seen in FIG. 2, thevoltage is applied to the lamp light emitting element (e.g., filament)part way through the power cycle. This causes a current pulse that cangenerate electromagnetic interference (EMI) and cause harmonicdistortion (THD). Filtering elements (e.g., chokes) may be installed toreduce EMI and THD but such elements can increase the cost, weight andsize of the system and can generate heat.

Another drawback of the phase-control clipping circuit is that the lampmay not operate properly when driven by a dimmer that delivers a clippedline voltage waveform to the lamp. The phase-control clipping circuitshown in FIG. 1 needs a sine wave voltage input for the phase settingcomponents to operate correctly. If the line voltage has been clipped bya dimming circuit so that a sinusoidal voltage waveform is no longerpresented to the lamp, the phase-control clipping circuit may nottrigger the diac and triac as intended.

Further, it is desirable to provide a filament for a lamp that isdesigned for a particular operating voltage. However, variations in linevoltage cause the operating voltage to vary (for example, by as much as10%) and thus filament have been designed to operate over a range ofvoltages, which may include voltages that cause the filament to operatewith less than the desired effect.

When the phase-control power controller is used in a voltage converterof a lamp, the voltage converter may be provided in a fixture to whichthe lamp is connected or within the lamp itself. U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,631is an example of the latter, in which a diode is provided in an extendedstem between the lamp screw base and stem press of the lamp for clippingthe line voltage to reduce RMS load voltage at the light emittingelement. U.S. Pat. No. 6,445,133 is another example of the latter, inwhich a voltage conversion circuit for reducing the load voltage at thelight emitting element is divided with a high temperature-tolerant partin the lamp base and a high temperature-intolerant part in a lowertemperature part of the lamp spaced from the high temperature-tolerantpart.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a novel lamp and methodin which an internal voltage controller converts a line voltage to adesired RMS load voltage using pulse width modulation (PWM).

A further object is to provide a novel lamp with a voltage controllerthat is entirely within a lamp base and uses PWM to define an RMS loadvoltage, where the voltage controller includes a feed-back circuit thatadjusts the RMS load voltage to a desired level based on a comparison ofthe load voltage to a preset reference, and a switching transistor thatpulse width modulates lamp current and that is responsive to thefeed-back circuit to adjust the duty cycle of the switching transistorto cause the RMS load voltage to reach the desired level.

A yet further object is to provide a novel lamp and method in which aninternal voltage controller converts a line voltage to a predeterminedRMS load voltage using a microcontroller that compares the RMS loadvoltage to a reference and adjusts the duty cycle of the switchingtransistor based on a result of the comparison.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic circuit diagram of a phase-controlled clippingcircuit of the prior art.

FIG. 2 is a graph illustrating voltage clipping in the phase-controlledclipping circuit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a partial cross section of an embodiment of a lamp of thepresent invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram showing an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 is a graph depicting the pulse width modulation of the loadvoltage of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram of a further embodiment of the presentinvention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIG. 3, a lamp 10 includes a base 12 that is arrangedand adapted to fit into a lamp socket and has an exterior lamp terminal14 that is adapted to be connected to line voltage, a light-transmittingenvelope 16 attached to the base 12 and housing a light emitting element18 (an incandescent filament in the embodiment of FIG. 3), and a lampinternal voltage conversion circuit 20 for converting a line voltage atthe lamp terminal 14 to a desired RMS load voltage.

The voltage conversion circuit 20 is housed entirely within the base 12(that is, entirely within the part of the lamp that is arranged andadapted to fit into a lamp socket such as shown in FIG. 3) and connectedin series between the lamp terminal 14 and the light emitting element18. The voltage conversion circuit 20 may be an integrated circuit in asuitable package as shown schematically in FIG. 3.

While FIG. 3 shows the voltage conversion circuit 20 in a parabolicaluminized reflector (PAR) halogen lamp, the voltage conversion circuit20 may be used in any incandescent lamp when placed in series betweenthe light emitting element (e.g., filament) and a connection to a linevoltage (e.g., lamp terminal).

With reference to FIG. 4 that illustrates an embodiment of the presentinvention, the voltage conversion circuit 20 includes line terminals 32for a line voltage and load terminals 34 for a load voltage, and a PWMcircuit 36 that pulse width modulates the load voltage and that isconnected to the line and load terminals. The PWM circuit 36 includes atransistor switch 38 that pulse width modulates the current supplied toa bridge 40 that provides the RMS load voltage to the lamp, and amicrocontroller 42. The microcontroller 42 includes a time-based signalsource that sends time-based signals to a gate of the transistor switch38 and a feed-back circuit that compares the load voltage to a referenceand adjusts a duty cycle of the transistor switch 38 (ON time comparedto total time) based on the comparison so that the RMS load voltagereaches the desired level. The duty cycle (set by changing frequencyand/or duration of the time-based signals) determines the total time percycle that the transistor switch is ON, which defines the RMS loadvoltage.

In one embodiment, microcontroller 42 includes an analog-to-digitalconverter (ADC) that converts the load voltage to a digital value, acomparator that compares the output from the ADC to a preset referencevalue, and a program (e.g., in a hardwired and/or programmable circuit)that adjusts the duty cycle of the transistor switch (e.g., increasingthe duration of the pulses to increase the RMS load voltage) based on anoutput from the comparator so that the desired RMS load voltage isreached. The reference value is preset to a value that provides thedesired RMS load voltage for the lamp. The structure and operation ofmicrocontroller 42 need not be described in detail as suchmicrocontrollers are known in the art and are commercially availablefrom various sources, including Microchip Technology, Inc. under the PICtrademark (e.g., a PIC™ 8-pin 8-bit CMOS microcontroller, such asPIC12F683).

In operation, the microcontroller 42 generates signals (e.g., pulses)whose frequency and duration provide a transistor switch duty cycle thatis appropriate for the desired RMS load voltage. The signals are appliedto the gate of the transistor switch so that the voltage applied to thelight emitting element is switched ON and OFF at much greater speed thanthe line voltage frequency (typically 50–60 Hz). The frequency of thesignals is desirably higher than the audible range (i.e., above about 20kHz). FIG. 5 shows an example of an incoming voltage waveform and apulse width modulated voltage waveform (the frequency being reduced toillustrate the modulation).

The microcontroller senses the load voltage and compares this voltage toa reference that has been set in advance to provide the desired RMS loadvoltage. The microcontroller then adjusts the RMS load voltage to thedesired amount by adjusting the triggering of conduction in PWM circuit36 based on the comparison.

In an alternative embodiment, the feed-back circuit includes separatecomponents (e.g., timer, comparator, timer adjustment program) thatperform the above-described functions, rather than a microcontroller.

With reference now to FIG. 6, a particular embodiment of the presentinvention includes a full-wave bridge 44, an insulated gate bipolartransistor 46 (which alternatively may be a MOSFET), and a programmablemicrocontroller 48 (e.g., a PIC™ microcontroller) that includes ananalog-to-digital converter. The microcontroller 48 monitors the voltageon the output line and automatically adjusts the duty cycle of the pulsestream delivered to the transistor switch such that the RMS load voltagesupplied to the lamp filament is constantly at the desired level. Inputsto the microcontroller 48 may be provided by including appropriatecircuitry such as the connections, resistors and capacitors in FIG. 6,which are shown by way of example. The microcontroller desirably is oroperated to be astable (not having a stable state at which it can rest).A heat sink (not shown) may be attached to the transistor switch asneeded.

With reference again to FIG. 3, the lamp may also include a dimmer 50that clips a line voltage. The dimmer 50 is external to the lamp 10 andconnected between exterior lamp terminal 14 and an external source ofthe line voltage 52. The dimmer may be a conventional forward or reversephase-control dimmer, or pulse width modulation dimmer, that delivers aclipped line voltage waveform (such as the forward clipped waveformshown in FIG. 2) to the line terminals of the lamp. The PWM voltagecontroller of the present invention operates independently of linevoltage magnitude and waveform and thus is not affected by the clipping.

Since the voltage conversion circuit is not divided into separate parts,such as the high temperature tolerant and intolerant parts in theabove-cited U.S. Pat. No. 6,445,133, the cost for the circuit is reducedand manufacturing complexity is reduced. Further, since the voltageconversion circuit is not in the stem and the size of the stem is notaffected by the addition of the circuit within the lamp (see theextended stem in the above-cited U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,631), thecomplexity of the stem and the manufacturing cost thereof and the sizeof the lamp are reduced.

The addition of the PWM voltage controller inside the lamp base as anintegral component of the lamp, rather than separately external to thelamp, permits the use of optimized low-voltage filaments in lampsintended for use with standard sockets, thereby improving lamp beamperformance, color temperature, efficacy, sag resistance, hot shockresistance, and vibration-induced flickering resistance.

While conventional RC phase-control clipping circuits are very sensitiveto fluctuations in the line voltage magnitude, the present inventionprovides a power controller that operates substantially independently ofthe incoming line voltage magnitude and waveform because no component ofthe PWM voltage controller is dependant on the magnitude or waveform ofthe incoming signal. Additionally, because the current is drawn from theincoming signal equally during all periods of the input cycle, PWM ofload voltage avoids the phase-control clipping pulses that cause EMI andTHD in the prior art. This advantage is particularly significant when alarge number of lamps are connected to the same supply circuit.

The present invention affords the additional advantage that the lampfilament can be designed specifically for a predetermined reducedvoltage. By operation of the present invention, the lamp designer isassured that the filament will receive this predetermined voltage.

While embodiments of the present invention have been described in theforegoing specification and drawings, it is to be understood that thepresent invention is defined by the following claims when read in lightof the specification and drawings.

1. A lamp with an integral voltage controller, comprising: a lamp basearranged and adapted to be removably attached to a lamp socket, saidlamp base having a line voltage terminal; a light emitting elementattached to said lamp base and electrically connected to said linevoltage terminal; and a voltage conversion circuit that reduces a linevoltage received at said line voltage terminal to an RMS load voltagethat is suitable for operation of said light emitting element, saidvoltage conversion circuit being entirely within said lamp base andconnected in series between said light emitting element and said linevoltage terminal, said voltage conversion circuit having a bridge thatsupplies the RMS load voltage to said light emitting element, aswitching transistor that pulse width modulates a current supplied tosaid bridge, a timer that is connected to a gate of said switchingtransistor to turn said switching transistor on and off at a rate thatdefines the RMS load voltage, an analog-to-digital converter thatconverts the RMS load voltage to a digital signal, a comparator thatcompares an output from said converter to a preset reference value, anda circuit that adjusts said timer in response to an output from saidcomparator.
 2. The lamp of claim 1, wherein said switching transistor isone of an insulated gate bipolar transistor and a MOSFET.
 3. The lamp ofclaim 1, wherein said voltage conversion circuit is an integratedcircuit.
 4. The lamp of claim 1, further comprising a dimmer that clipsthe line voltage, said dimmer being external to said lamp base andconnected between said line voltage terminal and an external source ofthe line voltage.